Soap holder



Dec. 9, 1930. H. E.MOINEAU SOAP HOLDE Filed Jan. 29. 1929 [NVE/V T OR. flea/0r Z. 4/0/0300 A 7' RIVEYS.

Patented Dec. 9, 1930 PATENT-OFFICE",

HECTOR E. IOINEAU, OF-MARLBOBD, MASSACHUSETTS soar HOLDER Application filed January 29, :1929. Serial No. 335,884.

I This invention is a soap holder adapted to be made of wire or wire rod'and'the function of which is to support a cake of soap in a manner to ermit the soap to be readily re- 6 moved, whi e in wet slippery condition.

Wire soap holders have long been in common use. The most usual form of. holder consists of a wire basket shape having a fiat bottom with upstanding sides secured to a 1 1 suitable frame with WhlCh appropriate sup-' porting means is associated. The disadvantage of this construction, however, is that it is frequently diflicult, if the soap is wet and slippery, to remove the cake of soap from the basket through the inability to obtain a firm grasp on the soap.

It has heretofore been suggested to make soap dishes with flat bottoms sloped toward the, forward side and with the filler wires which form the bottom of the dish substantially flush with the upper edge of the wire frame. Thesedevices have not, however, met with general favor for the reason that in use they bring about a pronounced wastage of soap. For example, after a cake of soap has been used for a while, particularly if it is left in water for any appreciable time, it becomes quite soft, so that when laid in a soap holder, thewei ht of the cake of soap, 'as well as the '30 hand w ichplaces it there, causes the filler wires to sink into or become embedded in the bottom surface of the soap.

When the soap is subsequently removed by drawing the cake forwardly out of the soap holder, an appreciable portion of the lower face of the soapis scraped off of the cake by f the front edge of the frame which produces a pronounced shearing or rubbing action on the soap. Inspection of soap dishes made,

as stated, will invariably show large accumulations of soap at the forward edge of the frame and examination of the soap used in connection with such dishes will show that appreciable amounts of the soap have been cut 5 away and wasted in this manner. 7

With the foregoingconsiderations in mind, the object of the present invention is' to provide a soap holder from the front end of which the soap may be readily slid in such manner as to obviate lifting of the cake of soap from the holderand at the same time to effectually preclude the cutting away or wastage of the cake in the manner hereinbefore stated.

In practically carrying out the present 5 invention, the holderis'formed with the usual frame while the body or basket portion of the holder is formed by filler wires which extend from front to rear of the frame and are shaped, so as to extend downwardly from'the' rear portion of the frame and then upwardly at an angle whereintheir projection would extend well above the forward portion ofthe' frame. Adjacent this forward portion of the frame, however, the filler wires are bent sharply downward and secured to the frame. As a result, a cake of soap sliding in a forward direction out of the basket portionof the frame is directed in a plane appreciably ele- I vated above the plane of the frame so that the soap cannot possibly come into contact with the front portion of the frame and as a result the scraping or wearing action to which I have referred is wholly absent in the construction of this invention.

Another feature of the inventionconsists in so bending the filler wires intermediate their ends that the soap is supported in the holder in spaced relation to the rear reach of the frame and sufficiently distant therefrom to permit the fingers to be introduced between the back of the soap and the frame. The necessity of digging the fingernails into the soap to remove it from the holder is thus obviated and the removal of the soap is materially facilitated. This feature is accomplished by making the angle in the filler wires at the base of the frame considerably greater than a right angle so that when the soap is in place, it is supported well forwardly of the back reach of the frame and in a position to be readily grasped and drawn forwardly out of the holder.

Features of theinvention, other than those specified, will be'apparent from the hereinafter detailed'description and claims, when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

The accompanying drawing illustrates one practical embodiment of the invention, but

the construction therein shown is to be understood as illustrative, only, and not as defining the limits of the invention.

Figure 1 is a plan view of a soap holder embodying the present invention.

Figure 2 is a section on the line 22 of Figure 1.

Figures 3 and 4 graphically illustrate the problem solved by the structure of the present invention, Figure 3 being a front to rear elevation of a soap dish wherein thefiller wires are flush with the front bar of the frame, and Figure 4 being a section on the line 44 of Figure 3.

Referring first to Figures 3 and 4 of the drawings, 1 designates the front bar of a soap dish, the bottom of which dish is formed with filler wires 2, which are flush with the upper edge of the front bar 1. 3 designates a cake of soap, which by virtue of tho-rough wet-ting is softened somewhat so that when laid on the soap dish, the filler wires 2 will sink into the bottom of the cake, as clearly indicated in Figure 4. lVhen this occurs, and it is usually the case, the plane of the bottom face 4 of the soap is below the plane of the upper surface of the filler wires 2 for a distance indicated 00 in Figures 3 and 4.

The result of this common fact is that when the soap is drawn forward, as indicated by the arrow y, in Figure 3, the front bar 1 acts in the same manner as a scraper to scrape from the bottom of the cake 3 alayer of soap substantially equal in thickness to the distance m and extending entirely across the cake of soap and from the front to the back thereof. A portion of the soap thus scraped off is indicated at 2 in Figure It not only const-itutes a waste, but a certain amount of this soap clings to the holder and renders the same untidy in appearance.

From the discussion of Figures 8 and 4, the problem of soap dispensing will be apparent and this problem prevails wherever the soap in cake form is supposed to be drawn by a sliding movement off of the forward end of a soap dish, whether the dish be formed with a flat bottom or an inclined bottom, as shown in these figures.

The present invention provides a complete solution for the problem aforesaid in a simple and efficient manner.

Referring now to Figures 1 and 2, the soap holder of the present invention comprises a rectangular frame 10 of sufficiently heavy wire rod to properly support the structure and maintain its shape. The frame 10 is provided with a bracket 11 or any other suitable means known to the art for supporting the frame upon a wall, bath tub or otherwise as may be desired. The body or basket portion of the holder is formed by filler wires 12 which extend from front to back and longitudinal stiffening wires 13 which extend transversely of the frame.

The wires 12 and 13 may be formed by individual lengths of wire secured at their opposite ends to the respective reaches or sides of the frame, but, in the preferred form of this invention, I prefer to use the elongated ring or loop construction illustrated. The advantage of this arrangement is that the welding of the loops to the frame is more readily accomplished with loops or rings than with employing single wire lengths, and in the finished construction, there are absolutely no raw wire ends which may cause difficulty in enameling or which will catch the fingers or a cloth. The filler wires or loops 12 are welded at their rear ends to the under side of the back reach 14 of the frame, while the forward ends of these filler wires are welded to the back side of the front reach 15 of the frame. These filler wires are however bent so that they extend downwardly from the. back reach 14 for a distance as indicated at 16 and are thence turned at an angle designated a in Fig. 2. This angle is materially greater than a right angle so that when the cake of soap 3 is in the position indicated,

it will bev supported in this angle with the rear edge of the soap spaced well forwardly of the rear reach 14 of the frame. The distance thus left between the soap and the frame is sufficient to permit the fingers to be introduced into said space so that the soap may be grasped and drawn forwardly out of the holder without necessitating digging of the fingernails into the soap as heretofore required.

From the angle. bend a, the filler wires extend upwardly and forwardly in inclined relation to the frame to a point slightly above the top of the frame as indicated at 17. The forward ends are thereupon turned downwardly, as at 19, and extend to the point of welding to the frame reach 15.

It will be noted particularly from Figure 2 that the direction of upward inclination of the parts 17 of the filler wires 12 is such that the forward extension of the plane. of the upper edges of these wires, indicated at 18, is appreciably above the plane of the upper edge of the frame 10, so that when a cake of soap 3 is drawn forwardly to slide it out of the holder, it is a practical impossibility for the soap to engage with the front reach 15 of the frame. It will move forwardly well above this reach of the frame and so far removed therefrom that it cannot possibly touch it, even though the soap has sunk well between the filler wires as indicated at Figure 2.

Under these conditions, it is apparent that the placing of the soap into or removing it from the holder will be accomplished without the soap coming into contact with the front reach of the frame and without requiring that thefingernails be dug into the soap, and

it therefore necessarily follows that the dis-v advantages of prior constructions to which I have adverted is entirely obviated in the employment of the soap holder of the present invention. In practice, the stiffening wires 13 may be dispensed with if desired. They are, however, generally employed to impart greater rigidity to the structure.

It will be apparent from the foregoing detailed description of this invention that although the invention is relatively simple, it overcomes disadvantages which have long been a serious problem in the use of wire soap dishes and has constituted such a drawback as to seriously interfere with the practical merchandising of soap holders ofthe character under consideration. The structure of the present invention may be manufactured at no greater cost than the prior constructions, yet the difiiculties of such prior constructions are wholly obviated.

The drawings show the invention in its preferred practical form, but the invention is to be understood as fully commensurate with the appended claims.

Having thus fully .described the invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. A soap holder embodying a frame, and filler wires extending across the frame from the rear to the front thereof and forming a support for a cake of soap, said filler wires i being bent downwardl to collectively form a support for a cake 0 soap and the base of which support is inclined in an upward and forward direction, the forward ends of the filler wires being bent downwardly to their point of attachment to the frame, whereby the plane of the inclined base is appreciably above the frame at the front thereof.

2. A soap holder embodying a suitable frame with means to support the frame in a substantially horizontal position, and filler wires extending across the frame from front to back thereof, the forward end of each filler wire being secured to the front portion of the frame and extending upwardlyfrom the point of attachment to a point above the frame, and thence in a downwardly and rearwardly inclined direction to apoint belowand forwardly of the rear portion of the frame, and thence bent upwardly and extending to and secured to the rear portion of the frame, whereby said filler wires collectively provide a soap holding portion having an inclined bottom, an extension of the plane of which is appreciably above the forward portion of the frame.

3. A soap holder embodying a frame with means to support the same in substantially horizontal position, and filler wires extending across the frame from the front to back thereof, said filler wires being bent to form a depressed cket for holding a cake of soap within the rame, the base of which pocket is positioned in a plane which slopes upwardly in a forward direction and which intersects the plane of the upper surface of the frame at a distance rearwardly from the front of the frame, whereby said base is adapted to guide the soap for sliding movement out of the pocket and over the front of the frame in a plane appreciably above the front of the frame.

4. .A soap holder embodying a suitable frame with means to support the frame in a substantially horizontal position, and filler wires extending across the'frame from front to back thereof, the forward end of each filler wire being secured to the front portion of the frame and extending upwardly from the point of attachment to a point above the frame, and thence in a downwardly and rearwardly inclined direction to a point below and forwardly of the'rear portion of the frame, and thence bent upwardly at an angle greater than a right angle and extending to and secured to the rear portion of the frame, whereby said filler wires collectively provide a soap holding portion having an inclined bottom, an extension of the plane of which is appreciably above the forward portion of the frame and the rear end of which inclined bottom is sufficiently forward of the back por-' tion of the frame to support a cake of soap in spaced relation to said back portion of the rame.

5. A soap holder embodying a frame with means to support the same in substantially horizontal position, and filler wires extending across the frame from the front to back thereof, said filler wires being bent to form a depressed pocket for holding a cake of soap within the frame, the base of which pocket is positioned in a plane which slopes upwardly in a forward direction and which intersects the plane of the uppersurface of the frame at a distance rearwardly from the front of the frame, whereby said base is adapted to guide the soap for sliding movement out of the pocket and over the front of the frame in a plane appreciably above the front of the frame, and the back of the pocket being positioned in obtuse angular relation to the bot-' tom of the pocket to maintain the soap in 1 spaced relation to the back of the frame.

In testimony whereof I have signed the foregoing specification.

- HECTOR E. MOINEAU. 

